I know it has been awhile since I have updated this.My only excuse is that when traveling it’s easy to find things to write about that are interesting.Tied to the dock, not so much.
So what’s been going on?Pretty much just finding the groove here in Sitka.Weekend before last, I went to an open mic hosted at the Larkspur Café.I met Ted Howard, one of the musical mainstays here.He’s in a blues band by the name of Belly Meat as well as a member of Sitka Folk, an organization that promotes music events here.It was an enjoyable evening.
Last Friday night, I went to see Belly Meat at the Westmark Lounge.They’re a four piece, stand up bass, slide resonator, Ted on guitar and mando, and a hot harp player.Ted had asked me to bring my harps and sit in, but after listening to their harp player, all I wanted to do was sit and listen.Good stuff.
Saturday night was a fund raiser for a local fisherman who has cancer.There were four bands, the Sugar Shakers, a rockabilly cover band, Belly Meat, the Sitka Blues Band, and another band whose name escapes me.Held upstairs at the Moose Lodge, there had to be over 150 people dancing, drinking, and bidding on pastries and tasties.I was impressed by the turn out as it was competing with a local production of the Nutcracker Ballet, which by all reports was excellent.
Sunday afternoon it was back to the Larkspur Café for a jam session.Three quarters of Belly Meat showed up, Ted, Ernie the bassist, Gary, the exceptional harp player, as well as John, a very tasty mando player.Although most of the tunes were a little outside of my usual fare, I managed not to embarrass myself too badly.It was fun and I look forward to doing it again this Sunday.
Other than that, I’ve gotten a little more done on the novel and Jazz has familiarized himself with the smells around the harbor and environs.We’ve been having gorgeous weather, clear, highs in the low 40s and calm winds.It looks like it has snowed but it’s actually frost from below freezing temps at night.And the sun is above the horizon for over 6 hours.Pretty nice.
The pic of Mount Edgecumbe was taken last weekend from where we were tied up when we first arrived.It shows the main entrance through the break water to the right.The others are of Eliason Harbor.
It’s been a week since we arrived here in Sitka.As it worked out, we got here just as the weather turned nasty.The mooring we got was oriented roughly northeast-southwest and about 3/8 mile across open water to the breakwater.This proved to be a very uncomfortable situation as the storm winds and waves had a westerly component that rolled right through the openings in the breakwater and caught us broadside, slamming us against the dock.Sixty hours was spent checking mooring lines and fenders and sleeping little.To make matters worse, the boat tied ahead of us was occupied by a fellow named Bob who fancied himself an expert at tying up vessels.About midday on Thursday he knocked on the boat and demanded that I move further away from his boat.He was afraid my anchor was going to poke a hole in the skiff tied vertically to the stern of his boat.I didn’t really think it would as it was at least 3 feet away, but in the interests of harbor harmony I decided to humor him.He offered to help me and I took him up on it.This turned out to be a mistake as he was very drunk.After two hours of jockeying the Blue Note around in 20-30 knots of wind and 2-3 foot seas we ended up about 5 feet behind him.He was happy however, so the harmony was preserved.The mooring line and fender checking proved to be essential as we ended up collapsing three fenders and denting the topsides in two places.That night, a 28 foot Bayliner broke loose and ended up on the rocks.
I had called the harbormaster two days prior to our arrival, hoping for a slip assignment.I was told I would be put on the waiting list as there was nothing available except the transient float.I called again on Thursday morning to let them know I was here and to ask again about a slip.Same answer.Monday morning I decided to go talk to them face to face.I’m glad I did.After 20 minutes of sweet talking I now have a slip assigned to me.It will be more expensive than the transient mooring but it is considerably more sheltered AND it gets me away from drunk Bob.
On Saturday I ran into a fellow I had met in Valdez who was working on one of the seine boats on A float.He had just finished working as a diver here.We got to talking and it turned out we had several friends in the diving industry in common including a guy I had originally met in Santa Barbara over 35 years ago.After getting back to the boat I looked up the guy in the phone book.He’s listed!I haven’t gotten around to calling him yet.
This Sunday I am going in to the Larkspur Café.I’ve been told by three people now that there is a jam session every Sunday afternoon.I had intended to do it last Sunday but after Skyping with Jill I totally forgot to.My initial foray will be to see and hear what the scene is like.If I think I can add something I’ll take my toys in the next time.
The pic is an aerial view of the Sitka harbors.Eliason Harbor is in the upper left.The diagram is that of Eliason Harbor showing where we were and where we are.
Warm Springs Bay is roughly 80 miles from Petersburg.The available anchorages in between dictate two possibilities.One can split it 55 miles and 25 miles by choosing one of the harbors on the south end of Admiralty Island or split it 25 and 55 by anchoring in Portage Bay on Kupreanof Island.The weather forced the latter.
It had been blowing all week.The winds reported at Five Finger Light were 25 knots gusting to 40 knots.Not safe.By Saturday, the winds had “calmed” to high teens gusting to the low 20s.Not comfortable but doable.The Sunday forecast was for further moderation with it piping back up Monday.I decided to go.
We were late leaving.It was only 45 minutes, but it meant arriving in Portage Bay after dark.Two circumstances, one serendipitous, saved the situation.The first one was I had anchored there before.In 2000, Karen and I had put in there to await more favorable weather so I was familiar with the entrance.The other was that the sky had cleared and a half moon illuminated the Bay.Upon rounding East Point, an anchor light was shining where I had planned to anchor.Another sailboat had taken my spot.Fortunately there was plenty of room and we hooked with no complications.
Since Sunday was the long leg, we were underway at first light.The winds at Five Finger were 16 gusting 19 southeast.That meant that as soon as we entered Frederick Sound the winds rounding Cape Strait and out of Thomas Bay pushed up a nasty 4 foot chop on our aft quarter.The combination of pitching and yawing made for a very unpleasant ride and caused the vandals to come visiting.Thankfully it only lasted for a couple of hours.The sun was out and the porpoises were playing in our bow wave. The respite was brief though.As we rounded Cape Bendal we were once again subjected to the southeast winds blowing up Keku Strait.Four hours across the Sound to Point Gardner seemed like forever with the last hour requiring manual steering because of the heavy tide rips.What blessed relief to enter Chatham Strait even though it had begun to rain.An hour later we were tied to the dock in Baranof Warm Springs.
I had wanted to visit here for a long time, after hearing many stories of drinking, partying, and of course soaking in the springs.And here I was.Jazz and I explored the nearby environs, he reading the p-mail and me taking in the sights.The village of Baranof is situated on the north shore of the Bay between a large rock outcrop to the east and the waterfall to the west.There are less than 12 buildings visible with quite a few hidden in the trees upslope.Everything is connected by State-maintained boardwalks.One of the first buildings along the boardwalk from the floats is the public bath house.An interesting structure consisting of three rooms with doors facing the walk and open from waist high to ceiling on the bay side.Each room has a large tub and a chair.I decided to take Jazz back to the boat, grab a change of clothes and a beer, and take a soak.I knew it would be cold getting in and out of the tub because of the open air “window”, but I figured the warm water would be worth it.Brrr.Not quite.I stayed in long enough to get cleaned up and decided to drink the beer back down on the boat next to the heater.
Because our travel day was shorter on Monday I decided to hike up the boardwalk in the morning and find the actual springs.The boardwalk ended about a mile up the hill with no obvious springs in sight.There were a bunch of black plastic hoses, both large and small paralleling the walk.Of these, three were warm to the touch.Being the intrepid detective, I followed the warm ones to an area above the end of the boardwalk where it smelled faintly sulphurous.Aha!Imagine my disappointment when the hoses ended in a crevice with an old piece of roofing tin thrown over it.It wasn’t big enough for Jazz to swim in.Time was up.We had to get underway.As we were walking back, we ran into the caretaker who gave me directions to the springs.It would have to wait for the next time.
The next time came sooner than I expected.The forecast on Sunday afternoon was for 20 knot northerlies in Chatham Strait on Monday afternoon.I couldn’t receive the weather deep in the bay but looking out to the mouth it looked OK.And it was for about an hour.By the time we got to Takatz Bay about 7 miles north, we were bucking into 25 knots and 5 foot seas.We were down to about 4 knots of headway making the trip up to the entrance to Peril Strait an hour and a half longer than expected.Screw it!We turned around and ran before it back to Warm Springs Bay.Before entering the bay I flipped over to the weather channel.They had changed the Chatham weather to small craft advisories with winds to 30 knots and seas to six feet.Tuesday was 15 knots out of the south.Another day in Baranof Warm Springs.
After getting the boat squared away we walked up to find the springs.They are about 75 yards off the boardwalk towards the falls.Actually, the springs themselves are above a pool formed by naturally occurring rocks and a built-up wall.The pool overlooks the falls.Very spectacular.It is totally open however with no shelter from the rain which was continuing unabated, raising the question of what to do with clothes.Dealing with soaking wet clothes in a small enclosed cabin is no trivial matter in wet weather.Problem solved, don’t wear any!So I took Jazz back to the boat, took off all my clothes except socks, pulled my xtra-tuffs and rain gear back on and hiked back up.Heaven!The roar of the waterfall provided the sound track with the cold rain contrasting nicely with the hot water.I drank a beer, soaked til I pruned, pulled rain gear and xts back on and hiked down to the boat.
Tuesday we cruised up Chatham Strait, turned left into Peril Strait and anchored in Nismeni Cove about 22 miles up the Strait.Wednesday we made it down through Sergius Narrows, Neva and Olga Straits and into Sitka.I’m tied to the north transient float and all plugged in.
Two of the pics are of Baranof, one of the bath house and one of the pool.
Monday morning.Intermittent light rain, winds out of the southeast at 15 knots, 43 degrees.
On Thursday I went to a remembrance for an old friend for whom I used to do radio work.I really enjoyed going aboard his boat as he had a quick wit and didn’t suffer ignoramuses and idiots willingly.He never failed to make me laugh.I was a little embarrassed to not have recognized his wife but then she didn’t recognize me either until I told her my name.It was cool going through the photo albums there.It brought back a lot of memories.
Saturday night I went up to the Harbor Bar to watch the game and have a couple of beers.It was pretty dead as it has been the whole time I’ve been here.I left after the 5th inning, thinking my watching was jinxing the Phillies.(I’m not a Phillies fan, more of a Yankee anti-fan)I had planned to go back to the boat, fiddle around with my guitar, surf the web and hit the sack.About 11, I noticed the moon shining through the portlights and went up on deck.It was a gorgeous night, neither wind nor rain and the moon was very nearly full.It being Halloween, I wandered back up to the bar, figuring if Petersburg had any kind of night life it would be tonight.I wasn’t disappointed.The 20-and-30 somethings were out in force and partying.It was fun to see the costumes and watch the mating rituals.What a geezer I’ve become.
The itch to move on is beginning to manifest and I’m seriously considering scratching it.As I wrote Susan, I went up to look around where my shop used to be.We moved out of the building in 1980, and it was still standing when we moved away the next year.It was gone by 1987, when I next visited Petersburg while on a boat delivery.At that time the lot was surrounded by a chain link fence with pale brown slats inserted in the links making it difficult to see what it enclosed.By 2000, while moving my newly-purchased boat north, the lot was unchanged except for the wear and tear on the fence.Now, the fence remains with the exception of the side that faces the harbor which is completely open.The portion of the building that housed my shop had a concrete slab floor and my hope was when they razed it, the slab remained, showing where the walls, workbenches, and doors were.Alas, the lot is now compacted gravel and serves as an open storage area for fish-processing detritus: scale-encrusted cleaning tables, corroded plumbing, stacks of lumber, pallets.The nostalgia I expected while walking through was absent until I faced north, across the parking lot to the Trading Union grocery store.It is still there and although it is not exactly the same color it was 30 years ago, a kind of faded baby-poop yellow, it’s close.The experience made me realize that, although Petersburg will always hold a special place in my heart, I will only be able to visit there in my memories.
I have reconnected with several people I knew then and the reminiscing is pleasant.But a lot of water has passed over the dam and the times we shared are three decades old.Everyone has been very gracious in giving me their time but they are busy living their lives and I hesitate to insert myself back into theirs.For that reason I have not phoned those who are still listed, feeling uncomfortable putting them in the potentially awkward position of thinking they should do something for an itinerant from long ago.
So, where to go.Several factors play into this decision.First and foremost is safety.Because I don’t have crew, I have made it my policy to restrict travel to daylight only.This time of year at this latitude daylight is from a little before 7 AM to a little before 5 PM.That means there is roughly speaking 9½ to 10 hours per day for travel and anchoring.Add to that (or should I say subtract) the days are getting shorter by 4½ minutes per day as we approach the solstice.What this means is Blue Note can travel about 45 to 55 miles between anchorages on any given day, less as the days shorten.When you figure in weather delays, the final destination will most likely be the harbor where Blue Note will spend the winter.Given all the places I still want to visit before leaving southeast Alaska next spring, traveling north rather than south holds sway.Sitka stands out as the destination.It is 4 to 5 travel days from Petersburg.It has an enroute destination of Baranof Warm Springs, a place I have wanted to visit since I lived here in Petersburg.And it is a known quantity as well as a place where I can easily entertain visitors who have expressed an interest in visiting.
What remains is deciding when to depart.The weather is decidedly unfavorable as I write this.The winds in Frederick Sound are 20 to 25 knots and from the southeast, making for an unpleasant beam sea.Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, the forecast calls for a full gale in the Sound and in Chatham Strait.I talked to the harbormaster this morning and it looks like I will be able to stay where I am for another week.I have decided to weather in here rather than getting stuck out in some remote bay.We’ll see what the morrow brings.
Tuesday afternoon.Mostly cloudy, light winds, 50 give or take.The forecast is for rain and wind: typical October weather for Southeast.
Well I’m still in Petersburg.I think it is due more to inertia than desire.Don’t get me wrong, I like Petersburg.It’s just that to get somewhere else takes more effort than I care to expend right now.That and the fact that I won’t travel around here in the dark is keeping me tied to the dock.
So what’s going on?Well last Saturday night I went to the 4th annual Devil’s Thumb Brewfest and Chili Cookoff.It was held upstairs in the Sons of Norway Hall.This building was built nearly 100 years ago and is located on Sing Lee Alley above Hammer Slough. It is a listed national historical building.This status has apparently caused some consternation amongst the Sons and Daughters as the soft fir floor downstairs was recently replaced with a new white oak floor.No problem upstairs though.It’s carpeted.Anyway, this fest was very well attended, both by cooks and brewers, as well as eaters and drinkers.There were at least ten different chilis and several homebrew beers and wines as well as a rhubarb liqueur.After paying the entry fee, I was issued a baggie with 5 or 6 beans in it.Turns out each contestant had a covered cup in which the eaters and drinkers voted by depositing their beans.Now in my opinion, chili does NOT contain beans.There just so happened to be one cook who shared my opinion.Fortunately, he had concocted a very tasty moose chili as I really didn’t want to vote for something I didn’t like.He got two of my beans.I deposited one bean in the cup of a really cute cook who had entered a tasty black bean chili.(Hey what can I say?I’m a guy. :-))My other beans went to the brewers of a very tasty porter and the rhubarb liqueur.I think part of the reason for my attending was the hope of maybe seeing someone I knew from when I lived here 29 years ago.It was a ridiculous hope as the folks that I knew then have changed beyond my recognition as I undoubtedly have.Oh and for those of you who are wondering what the title refers to, Devil’s Thumb is a spectacular granite massif that protrudes from the range east of Petersburg and is both a geographical landmark and a boundary peak between Alaska and Canada.
I was disappointed to find that the Forest Service had taken over all of the building on the corner of Main and Haugen and that the Post Office had moved up near the airport.Seems to me they got it exactly backwards.It is a good cardio workout pedaling up the hill on the bike but not much fun in the rain.
Monday a week ago I joined the movie rental store.They seemed to have a decent selection and a lot of the older movies were only a dollar.Imagine my surprise when I was charged $4 each for a 3 year old movie and a 2 year old movie.I thought it was a little steep but I wanted to see them so I paid.I returned them the next night.After the Brewfest I went in and was careful to pick out two $1 movies.The girl at the counter asked if I was going to pay the late fees on the two prior movies.I refused, saying I had only had them one night.She said I hadn’t gotten them back by 6 PM and that she couldn’t do anything about it but that the person who could would be in the next day.I went in the next day and talked with her about the fine saying that I was a new member and wasn’t familiar with all of the rules.She asked if I signed the paper when I joined.I said I did but didn’t get a copy.She said that you don’t get a copy but that the 6 o’clock rule was also posted on the door and on a white board above the counter.The whiteboard was facing in another direction and to read it I had to move around to another counter.When I pointed out how old the movies were she offered to forgive the fine on the 3 year old movie but not the 2 year old movie.At that point I mentioned to her that I had spent $17 that week in her store, that her pricing was high in my experience, and that she was in competition with cable TV and Netflix.I asked her if she wanted my business.She replied that people came in every day asking for forgiveness on their fines and that I owed her $4.I cancelled my membership.It’s little wonder to me why she has to charge high prices.Sorry for the rant.
I am enjoying Petersburg though.With the exception of the movie rental experience my interaction with the residents here has been nothing but positive.I haven’t decided to winter over here yet but with each passing day it’s becoming more likely.
The pics are of the views I have when I slide open the hatch and of the boat from the parking lot outside of where my shop used to be.
Sunday morning in Petersburg.It is high overcast and calm, around 50.We’re moored in the North Harbor with a view of Kupreanof across the Narrows to one side and where my shop used to be on Main Street to the other.
We got a late start leaving Juneau. I had planned to go to Taku Harbor but it would have violated one of my primary safety rules, i.e., no after-dark anchoring. Instead we headed to Admiralty Cove. It was less than 14 miles but it got us out of Auke Bay. Auke Bay is the Juneau terminus for the State ferry system and whenever one comes in or out, the wake they produce rolls through the Statter Harbor unimpeded, causing the boats to slam against the floats. Not a relaxing situation.
It was a good call. The afternoon was beautiful. We watched the humpback whales feed in Stephens Passage all the way down to Admiralty Cove. After anchoring, I fired up the barbeque, cooked a buffalo burger and ate in the sun on the foredeck. After dinner I launched the skiff, and Jazz and I explored the cove before going ashore for Jazz’s business. The evening was magical with the silvery moon path shimmering across the water.
The morning dawned rainy and foggy and stayed that way almost all the way to Taku Harbor. In 2000, when I brought the boat north, Karen and I anchored in Taku Harbor and spent a very pleasant evening and morning. I was prepared to do the same but was surprised to find a new float. So instead we spent the night tied along side.
Thursday was another dry day, rare for Southeast in October.As we made the turn into Stephens Passage plumes from the whales could be seen all along the west side.They accompanied us all the way to our anchorage in Gambier Bay.Hundreds of them in pods from two to eight, circling, blowing, then diving.The slow arch and then the flukes in the air prior to diving lent a majesty that dominated the day.The feeling of loss as we left them to maneuver to our anchorage was palpable.
That night I plotted distances to our potential destinations for the next day, the choices being Baranof Warm Springs across Chatham Strait and Petersburg across Frederick Sound.The distances are roughly equal, approximately 55 miles, making for a long travel day.Petersburg won, probably for its ability to provide two-way conversation as Baranof Warm Springs is pretty lonely this time of year.
The whales were still feeding in lower Stephens Passage when we left Gambier Bay.As we came abeam The Five Fingers, they were breaching and slapping their fins.It was quite a show.Unfortunately the distance exceeded the capabilities of my little camera.
So here we are in Petersburg.I have spoken with several people I knew from when we lived here.I enjoyed reminiscing with Heidi Lee and Ron Loesch gave me a tour of his printing plant.KFSK was wrapping up their pledge week and Heidi talked me into visiting.Yesterday morning I went in and was put on the air with Matt Lichtenstein and Joe Viechnicki, two names and voices I was familiar with from APRN and especially Alaska News Nightly.We chatted about KFSK’s early history and my small part in it back in the late 70’s.In the afternoon I watched the 14th running of the Humpy 500 on PFI hill.This is a soap-box-derby-like affair with teams of children competing in costumes and interesting rolling contraptions.It is a typical Petersburg celebration where a portion of Main Street is blocked off and several hundred show up rain or shine to cheer the participants on.I didn’t stay for the final heats but it looked to me like the Black Cod Pearl team replete in their pirate getups and rolling pirate ship was the team to beat.
Apologies to Lou for the lack of whale pics.For the most part they were too far away for my meager photography equipment and when they were closer I attempted to capture their splendor using the video function on my little Sony digital completely forgetting to take any stills.I’m not looking forward to the verbal lashing she’s going to give me.Oh well.The first pic is of the intrepid crew of Blue Note standing in front of the Forest Service cabin in Taku Harbor. The second one is of a humpback taken on the way to Admiralty Cove.
Sunday afternoon.It’s overcast and calm, about 50 degrees.The forecast is calling for rain tonight and tomorrow with a party cloudy day on Tuesday.
We are in Auke Bay, Juneau, having arrived on Friday afternoon.We had two great travel days getting here.Thursday, the wind was right on the nose until we left Tenakee Inlet, but when we turned north in Chatham Strait, the wind was on our stern.We had a wonderful run up Chatham, sometimes wing-and-wing, sometimes reaching depending on the wind shifts.At times we were hitting over 8 knots, which is about as fast as Blue Note can sustain.And because we were traveling with the wind it was warm in the sun.
We got to Funter Bay about 7 in the evening and rather than anchoring we tied to a float.Friday dawned clear and calm.We had a leisurely morning, leaving a little after 10, and arriving here around 3, after a very pleasant motorsail.What a beautiful day for October in Southeast.It was warm enough for cocktails on the foredeck at 5.
I enjoyed Tenakee Springs.Wednesday afternoon I had a nice chat with the gal who was working in Snyder Mercantile and then tried out the hot springs.A relaxing hour soak, then around the corner to the Blue Moon Café where I had a good meal and a entertaining talk with the proprietess Rosie, “The Queen of Tenakee.”Originally from the Philippines, she has lived in Tenakee since 1955!What a character.
So here we are in Auke Bay.I’m not liking it much.I was considering staying here for a week or more, perhaps even spending the winter but not now.The wifi connections here suck.There is no commercially available one in Auke Bay and I’m pirating one from whomever I can get it.It’s frustrating.The worst thing though is there isn’t anything here except a combination gas station-liquor store-minimart.Everything is at least 2 miles away via a road whose speed limit is 50.Not much fun on a bicycle.Yesterday I took the bus three miles to Fred Meyer.It’s actually a pretty good bus service.But since I had to get dog food I had to take a cab back, an $18 ride.I’m thinking of heading down Stephens Passage towards Petersburg on Tuesday.We’ll see.
If the connection holds I’ll try to upload some pics of Tenakee.
